Bomin Linde LNG signed a Letter of Intent [ds_preview](LOI) with the Swedish ship-owner Furetank Rederi for the supply of LNG in the Baltic Sea region.
In 2015 Furetank Rederi began retrofitting the tanker »Fure West« pioneering the use of LNG as marine fuel in Europe. In cooperation with two partners in the Gothenburg-based Gothia Tanker Alliance, four LNG-fuelled newbuildings were ordered at the Avic Dingheng shipyard in China. The contracts were signed in the second quarter of 2016. The vessels are planned for commissioning in late 2018 and early 2019. They will be commercially managed by Furetank Chartering in the Gothia Tanker Alliance.
According to the LOI, Bomin Linde will supply the Furetank Rederi vessels ship-to-ship with a new LNG bunker supply vessel both in ports and potentially offshore using DP2 equipment. The commissioning of this Klaipeda-based supply vessel, the largest of its kind to date, is also scheduled for late 2018.
As an important step forward to reduce costs for our clients and to optimise shipping routes both companies will jointly explore the possibility of bunkering in Lightering Areas of the Baltic Sea. Lightering Areas are designated zones which allow for offshore bunkering outside port boundaries.
The four tankers will fulfil the IMO’s Tier III requirements. Wärtsilä’s supply for each vessel comprises a 9-cylinder Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel main engine, two Wärtsilä Auxpac 20 auxiliary engines, the gas valve unit, a controllable pitch propeller (CPP) compliant with Ice Class 1A, a high performance nozzle, a Wärtsilä Energopac rudder system, a Wärtsilä selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system for the auxiliary engines, 12 Wärtsilä deepwell cargo pumps, and two Wärtsilä deepwell ballast pumps with a frequency control system.
Furetank Rederi AB, with head office in Donsö on the Swedish west coast, presently owns and operates 5 modern tanker vessels, mainly employed in North European waters. It is part of the Gothia Tanker Alliance, marketing over 30 vessel in sizes 5.000 – 25.000 dwt.
